Gimbal systems are used in a variety of applications such as surveillance applications, communications applications, and robotics applications. A gimbal system may include a gimbal assembly that is operable to be mounted to a vehicle. A payload device may be attached to the gimbal assembly.
Typically, the gimbal system is adapted to position the payload device in a specific location or orientation and/or hold the payload device in a given position while the vehicle is moving. Positioning and/or holding the payload device may be useful for obtaining navigational information or targeting an object, as examples. Further, if the payload device is a sensor, the information provided by the sensor may be more reliable when the sensor is held steady.
To control the movement of a payload device, the gimbal system may move the payload device in one or more axes of articulation. An axis of articulation may also be referred to as an axis of freedom. Axes of articulation related to gimbal systems typically include one or more of an elevation axis, roll axis, and azimuth axis. The gimbal system may include additional axes as well.
However, gimbal systems are typically designed to attach to a specific type of payload device. Further, gimbal systems do not typically allow for the mechanical replacement of one type of payload device for another type of payload device. If such replacement is possible, the replacement procedure may be time-consuming and/or require specialized tools. This may be problematic for military personnel that require the use of any of a variety of payload-device types, and that may need to quickly replace one payload device for another type of payload device. Further, if specialized tools are required to attach or detach a payload device, then such tools may become lost or damaged.